NAME: AMNA KHALID

BA (HONS) 3RD YEAR

SUBJECT: EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL
EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION
BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION
Behavior modification is the process of changing patterns of human
behavior over the long term using various motivational techniques
(negative reinforcement) and rewards (positive reinforcement).
Behavior modification is also used often to treat obsessive-
compulsive disorder (OCD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD), irrational fears, drug and alcohol addiction issues,
generalized anxiety disorder, and separation anxiety disorder.

It's easy to make a change. The hard part comes in making the change
stick. Anyone can say they're going to quit smoking and then ignore
one or two cravings, or commit to an exercise regimen and then hit
the gym twice in a week. The challenge is to stick with the new habit,
which is not so easy. This is where behavior modification comes in.

Behavior modification says that we can change the way we act, or

react, by learning and by attaching consequences to our actions. You
can't force someone to change their behavior. You can, however,
motivate them to change their behavior by changing the environment.
The psychologist B.F. Skinner, known for his research on operant
conditioning , if the consequences of an action are negative, there is a
good chance the action or behavior will not be repeated, and if the
consequences are positive, the chances are better that the action or
behavior will be repeated. He referred to this concept as "the principle
of reinforcement."

Put simply, Skinner's behavior modification model is a way to change

habits by following actions up with positive or negative consequences
to either break bad habits or reinforce good habits to continue.
EXAMPLE:
For a long time, I set my alarm on my cell phone, then put it on my
nightstand when I went to sleep each night. Without fail, the alarm
would sound in the morning and I’d either hit snooze repeatedly or
pick up my phone and spend the next half hour scrolling through
Twitter and Instagram until I was nearly late for work. It was a habit I
hated and knew I had to change — but how?

I examined the problematic behavior (laying in bed too long) and the
cause (the distraction of my phone) and realized that, in order to
modify the behavior, I needed to eliminate the cause. So I bought a
small, analog alarm clock and put it on my dresser, which meant I
needed to physically get up out of bed to turn it off. I also started
charging my cell phone across the room, eliminating the temptation to
scroll through social media each morning before finally getting out of
bed. When I say this small action changed my life, it’s not an
exaggeration — I found that the simple act of placing my feet on the
floor before standing to turn off my alarm became a signal to my
brain that said “time to wake up and start my day!”

egetables at dinner.

Techniques of Behaviour Modification

The purpose behind behaviour modification is not to understand why
or how a particular behaviour started. Instead, it only focuses on
changing behaviour, and there are different methods used to
accomplish it. This includes:
• Positive reinforcement
• Negative reinforcement
• Punishment
• Flooding
• Systematic desensitization
• Aversion therapy
• Extinction

Positive reinforcement is pairing a positive

stimulus to behaviour. A good example of this is
when teachers reward their students for getting a
good grade with stickers.

Negative reinforcement is the opposite and is

the pairing of behaviour to the removal of a negative
stimulus. A child that throws a tantrum because he or
she doesn’t want to eat vegetables and has his or her
vegetables taken away would be a good example.
Punishment is designed to weaken behaviours
by pairing an unpleasant stimulus to behaviour.
Receiving detention for bad behaviour is a good
example of punishment.
Flooding involves exposing people to fearinvoking objects or
situations intensely and rapidly.
Forcing someone with a fear of snakes to hold one
for 10 minutes would be an example of flooding.
Systematic desensitization is also used to treat
phobias and involves teaching a client to remain
calm while focusing on these fears. For example,
someone with an intense fear of bridges might start
by looking at a photo of a bridge, then thinking about
standing on a bridge and eventually walking over a
real bridge.
Aversive Therapy involves developing love
towards a person nourishing positive thoughts about
the person. Instead of finding fault of a person, one
notice significant good aspects the person possesses,
one may not tend to have an aversion to others.
Aversion is a boomerang that returns and assaults
the person who shot it. Hence it is wise to avoid
aversion.
Extinction involves making a person get rid of
unwanted behaviour. A child who is put on a timeout because of bad
behaviour may eventually sto p
that behaviour.
Donald Meichenbaum (1977), Cognitive Behaviour
Modification, Scandinavian Journal of
Behaviour Therapy, vol. 6, no. 4, DOI:
10.1080/16506073.1977.9626708 p. 185-192